MARCH TEST DRIVE

[recollecters]

TEST DRIVE

MARCH TEST DRIVE The city of Recollé... To infinity...and beyond! I. Wake up, get up, get out there, Retrospecters! Today's a new day and with the roads in place thanks to the efforts of Retrospec users, several locations may be explored. With Pesgare three hours south by boat, Respatrum an hour east and underground, Bosuma two hours west through the Recollé Woods and Magatus seven hours north from the city, visitors may come and go to explore the regions and their points of interest. The travel may take some time and the scenery will change around you as you go. Those same monsters from before continue to lurk just outside of the city and on the path to these locations and wild flora sprawls over various pathways. Take some time to study them if you'd like. And speaking of study, along the way you'll find various road signs and warnings along the way including giant man-eating frogs, fire-breathing horses, severe flood warnings and more. In addition you will find large directories in the middle of the road pointing you in the directions of the four locations. However, you'll also find these helpful guys who just want to do a good job and will get to work on these new roads! But wait, shouldn't they be working on some of the unfinished pathways and not the main ones? How do you stop these crazy things anyway? You may have to find a way to subdue the jackhammers or direct them to a new location. Good luck getting them to listen over the noise. II. Then again, with these pathways open now you may find yourself already in one of these new districts and very, very far away from your home. One minute maybe you're driving along, listening to your favorite road trip playlist as you prepare for Spring Break and the next you'll realize a wrong turn has lead you straight into the heart of a snowy mountain. Has this forest always been here? This seaside village is way too crowded! No matter which of the areas you end up in, it will be up to you to find your way out and back without a map on-hand. There's a good chance you can find strangers or maybe even some friends in these regions to fill you in, but there's always something going on to distract from your main goal. In Pesgare, you may find yourself in the midst of a heavy rain shower. While some of you may be prepared and have an umbrella on hand, others will notice that the rain is an iridescent color that falls and curves in arcs. Getting soaked by the rain may invoke a strange desire to cause a scene and yell dramatically at whoever is close by (and perhaps even belt it out if you're unfortunately unlucky.) In Respatrum, the sound of loud cheering and applause draws your attention to a large stadium. In the center of the ring is a man with a red cape, waving it in front of a burning, burly bull. A final flourish sends the bull back into its pen, raring and ready to go the next round. But wait! Without warning, the organizer of the bull fights grabs you by the shoulders and hands you a cape, shoving you straight into the ring with the crowd roaring above you and the bull bursting out of its cage. What a rush! In Bosuma, the creatures of the forest appear to be out and around including rabbits, squirrels, giant woodpeckers and rainbow-colored deer that aren't afraid to approach people. In fact, all of the creatures appear content to welcome these newcomers and show them around the forest. At night, several large, blooming flowers begin to glow in various neon colors. Colored pollen also appears to be falling from the flowers, leaving a mist over you that sweeps over you like a soft waterfall. Depending on the color though, you may find yourself feeling a little different... And finally, what's going in Magatus? Why it's sports! A winter sports competition is going on at the mountain looming above the Magatus ski lodge and the snow is fresh and perfect! However, landing on the slope is probably a bad idea, isn't it? Hope you're ready for a slippery ride down the mountain! III. Back in the city itself, life goes back to normal and several citizens are preparing for spring. The Recollé Community Center has gathered together to start cleaning up the local parks and community areas to plant brand new flowers to brighten up the city. Are you good with a shovel? Come join them in rehousing potted plants, picking up garbage and dead shrubbery from winter's harsh temperatures and more. If planting's not your style, over at Recollé High School several citizens are working together to prepare for the musical production Villainous, as put on by the high school's drama club! Sets still need to be built, costumes need to be finished and advertisements need to be distributed! For you artistic types out there, the drama club would love your support and time to get them ready as the premiere draws closer and closer. IV. Those of you who have lived here for years know that Mayor Mayer loves holidays. He does his best to never miss a celebration of any kind and while sometimes his efforts are smaller and more personal, this year he seizes the opportunity to celebrate an entire weekend dedicated to St. Patrick's Day! Though the holiday is on 3/17, festivities extend to 3/18 for two days of fun. What does this mean? It means that everywhere you go you'll find discounted prices for anyone wearing green, carts selling corned beef sandwiches and cabbage salads, and for those of legal age bars are specializing in green beer and green mixed drinks for miles. Seabiscuit the chocobo rides proudly through the city with the mayor dressed as a leprechaun, encouraging citizens to hunt for his pot of gold that he's hidden somewhere in the city! A series of clues will lead players onward and spreading out through locations such as Expressive, the Towers, Freshens and more. With luck, citizens playing along will find small golden coins emblazoned with a chocobo portrait! Unfortunately, something seems to be in the air and surrounding these coins. Unknown to the mayor, those who pick up these coins will find themselves hit with the overwhelming urge to find someone not wearing green and pinch them as tradition. Whether you're doing the pinching or you're a walking target, the coins' power over you will only wear off when the deed is done. As for the mayor? Anyone who collects more than 10 coins will find that they're eligible for a prize of $50 which can be collected at city hall. Happy pinching hunting! BONUS. The nice thing is that if you're in the city or if you're in one of the new regions, your phone works. Where would we be without technology? It's nice to be in constant connection with your friends and loved ones with the ability to check emails, social updates, maps and more. However, the internet can sometimes be a strange place and you will find yourself receiving a message from a Retrospec user named Zee Carlisle. Hey newbies, how's it going? You're probably pretty confused, aren't you? I think I can fix that. It's all the text says before you find yourself redirected to a private chat with another Retrospec user. Don't be shy now! Say hi and ask all of the questions you need! Welcome to the recolle test drive meme! All characters will be begin in-game AU'd as Recollé residents. You may use any of the above prompts for ideas or make up your own depicting your Recollé AU! Prompts do not have to be set in the districts listed above. You can review our list of locations for what's available. Please note that TDM threads can be used as samples, can be kept as game canon, and can also be used for bonus points for future item regains. Share a few minor details of your AU, tag around, and have fun! For current players, please remember that TDM threads can only be used for bonus points, not regains. Please note: you will need a reserve to apply, and current characters must have full AC posted at the time of their reservation. Your March TDM directory is here, and your AU workshop is here! Our mod questions thread for this TDM is over here!

Comments

[breakingvoice]

[Lina knows, more in the back of her head, that not everybody here is going to be here because they want to. and she doesn't know Natalia maybe as well as she could, but she guesses it's about 50/50 with her. she nods, smiling happily.]

It really is wonderful. And we get to play a part in it this year! So you're here for fun? I should've guessed with the things you've told me about vegetarian cooking.

[it's kind of a pointed question, but she wants to be sure.]

[breakingvoice]

That won't stop people who are already drunk. [but it's a good idea, unsurprisingly. in Lina's experience, Clover has a lot of those. she sighs as she upends her plate into the trash.]

It's fine. Maybe this is a sign that I've already sampled enough and I should just... go back home and start writing my next post. Did you have anything exciting planned today?

[beneathmoonlight]

Apples are good too! Especially baked with cinnamon.

[He really doesn’t mean to advertise when he talks about the bakery, he swears. It just kind of happens.]

You’re always welcome!

[He should probably study soon, but...]

What kind of books do you like?

Josuke Higashikata | Jojo's Bizarre Adventure

[pomaded]

iii.

[There are only a few days left until opening night and the theatre is a mess of students in half-finished costumes practicing lines and scales or arguing about props- "For the last time, we do not need a rubber chicken!"- and anxious teachers who look like they're regretting allowing this much creative freedom to teenagers. It's all par for the course. Every production, every year has its own hurdles and quirks and, this year, one of those quirks takes the form of a very unexpected figure perched on the stage with a bundle of fabric and a threaded needle in his hands.

Josuke Higashikata, far more frequently spotted sleeping in detention, is attempting to fix a dropped hem on the skirts of one of the lead actress' costumes. Even more startlingly, he's actually here out of choice. Any other time, the words "school club" might have sent him running but, after a difficult start to the year, he's actually decided to try and make an effort for his mom's sake. Those extra credits will go a long way in making his patchy attendance record seem less hopeless and showing her he really means it this time. Anyway, it's actually a lot more fun than he thought it might be. Maybe he-

The needle jabs into his finger.]

Shit...!

iv.

[Sure, he's not supposed to be out and, even if he were, he definitely wouldn't be allowed to be at a bar but Josuke's not too concerned about the consequences right now. If he's lucky, his mom's still grading papers and hasn't even noticed that her wayward son isn't in his room pretending to do homework like he usually is. Either way, the atmosphere was too lively to resist from the outside and the holiday cheer within is just as impossible to turn away from now he's here. Okay, so it probably wasn't the smartest idea to waltz into a busy bar on St. Patrick's Day without a shred of green- to be fair, it's not a great colour on him- on but it had been easily fixed by plucking a shamrock-print ribbon off of one of the decorations on the door and fixing it to his jacket instead. There. Now he only looks like he's half-assing it.

It's a shame that the issue of ordering isn't quite so easily resolved. In spite of all the confidence Josuke brings with him as he sidles up to the bar and asks for a beer, the bartender remains thoroughly unimpressed. Maybe he should have gotten a fake ID after all.

Nose scrunching, he puts on his best wounded expression and rubs the back of his neck.]

Don't look at me like that, I'm twenty [one is too obvious and low but anything older than twenty five is way too high] three next month.

[It's a blatant lie but, with nearly six feet on his side, an expression that's the perfect mix of butter wouldn't melt and just daring the server to challenge him, and cash in hand, he's making it hard to turn him away. But, just to make it all the more convincing and add that extra level of awkward, he then turns to the person next to him and grins.]

Hey, man, it's been a second! Back me up here, will ya?

[hello, complete stranger, you are now complicit]

bonus

( ౦ ‸ ౦ ;; )

is this cause i dled that movie last week

Mikaela Hyakuya | Owari no Seraph

[allforyuu]

x. Pesgare
[The rain is refreshing enough that even though he carries an umbrella with him, Mika doesn't try to take it out. Sometimes it's worth getting a shower, especially when the weather is as mild and inviting as now. He spins the umbrella as if it was a cane, casually strolling down the bridge he's on. It's almost too perfect, as if it's taken out of a movie. It reminds him of that one strange movie where people were singing in the rain.]

[His thoughts are interrupted when he hears the sound of someone running up behind him, their wet footsteps slapping on the soaked pavement.]

x. st. patrick's day
[What a strange place to end up in. The golden coins does not make Mika want to investigate further. It's just money. Given how well his parents are doing and how carefreely they share, he doesn't need to concern himself with these things as long as he has his father's credit card. It's even a little vulgar to him.]

[Even so, it piques his interest enough to explore. A city full of celebration and colours is never a bad thing, after all. Even if he's not wearing green...]

[sundays]

Problems? Is something ailing you?

[answer the fucking question, chiaki]

Oh - and I am Chiaki Aoi!

[sundays]

Nicely done, Mizuki! [SPARKLES AGGRESSIVELY he's so proud of his classmate....] Your kindness really does shine through in unexpected ways, doesn't it?

[don't just make assumptions like that about people, chiaki]

But no, I believe that's it! [he'll move to actually start driving now - safely!] Which way should I go....?

[sundays]

[wait - ]

Ahaha, your offer is kind but that's still illegal! Regardless your well wishes are appreciated and accepted instead....

[he's a good boy

it's cool]

[sundays]

That's how it used to be, but...

[Back when Chiaki had endless energy and no fear toward the world, as if everyday was an adventure that was waiting to be conquered. He'd wait for Minato to catch up then, patient even though the other boy was older than him. Minato might duck his head but Chiaki keeps an arm around him, the other coming up to rest on top of his head and muss with his hair affectionately.]

You know for a while there, I couldn't find you! Ah, I tried - you know? My family went back to Japan for visits and even when that happened and I thought maybe you'd just changed your email address, but still lived in the same place...

[Minato was nowhere to be found, he'd gone somewhere that Chiaki couldn't reach.

Yet the hurt is nowhere to be find in Chiaki's eyes and even if the sadness lingers - it's overrun entirely by the fondness and joy. He's a simple boy.]

[sundays]

[There is totally an idiot screaming through the rain - and he's about to start off on another long dialogue up until he hears a familiar voice. Then his head shoots up and he immediately yells back???]

POLO!!

[the void responds]

[sundays]

[none, chiaki got gored and died about 37 seconds in





JUST KIDDING

call it luck, call it skill, call it mostly dumb luck, but Chiaki's somehow making it okay!! he's dodging the bull decently up until these last few seconds where he seems to refuse to do anything to harm the bull and is instead trying to lure it back into the pen that they released it from because animal care is iMPORTANT, even if it means having to scramble once the pen's open so that he doesn't get smashed against the wall

BUT

HE DOES IT

and he's back to wheezing and nearly falling over from exhaustion - but he does manage to spot jamie in the crowd somehow and gives him an energetic thumbs up with what spirit he has left]

[sundays]

Mm....? But - how did I...

[HOW DID HE EVEN GET HERE THEN, don't mind him as he does one 360 spin. and then like. another one, just a little bit slower to make sure he's comprehending everything he sees]

How... big is the boat?

[PROBLEM SOLVING GO]

[sundays]

Main characters wear red!!

[HE'S DISTRESSED ENOUGH TO ADMIT THIS OUT LOUD tho he might admit it under normal circumstances also?? but for now he just wails that as he keeps running and -

kashuu bowls into the bull and chiaki actually skids to a stop because he's a moron???]

Red Number Two! Are you okay?!

Pesgare

[dejerate]

[Yuu sprints, in some feeble and likely contradictory attempt in getting out of the rain. His heavy footsteps kicking up the rain water from the puddles, some getting up higher than his boots to splash at his jeans. He's not particularly looking ahead beyond ensuring he doesn't come off said bridge or anything, which is how he ends up almost barreling into Mika, tripping and nudging at the other's shoulder.

He tries to straighten, to regain his balance and glances to the other to apologize when the words die at his lips as he blinks at the familiar face. Or. Familiar enough, even if it had been years since he actually properly saw the other in person. His lips start to move but the words die, instead replaced with a name.]

Mika....?

[This was America, where there were a lot more fair-haired people around. But at the same time, he'd recognize that particular mop of hair and those eyes anywhere. Even if he hadn't seen Mika in person in years.]

the most dramatic of reunions. how appropriate

[allforyuu]

[Even if Yuu's hair is not particularly memorable, especially when wet, Mika could recognize those green eyes anywhere. Even if it's been so long. It makes him chest ache with some indescribable emotion, making his throat tight.]

[The rain mostly forgotten, he grabs a hold of Yuu's shoulders to make sure he's solid. That he's real. It's been so long since they've met in real life that he can almost not believe it. Mika's heart beat rings loudly in his ears.]

Yuu-chan?

[rhapsodist]

[He laughed, threading a arm through Angeal's.]

That's how it usually works. So I'm not surprised. Even just handing the stuff out went faster with more than one of us at the helm.

[adoringpast]

I've always been nice, shut up.

[ BUT OKAY at least they're moving now - and that's the hard part. like chiaki, sena also doesn't know where to go from here either since he arrived here on boat... hm. ]

Why don't you try going back to where you came from before you took that wrong turn? You probably just read the road signs wrong on the way here.

[ sena he's not illiterate wtf ]

[rhapsodist]

I suppose so.

[The attention it provided sounded annoying though. He gave a nod at the thanks.]

Thank you. Something good came out of all the tea I drank growing up.

[His mom taught him all he knew and the rest came from simple practice and trying new things. Green tea, however, was like water.]

III

[imaginex]

[There's a purple-haired girl settled near a patch of dirt when Chiaki approaches, hair tucked over her shoulder (really, she should've tied it up) and slowly building up a pile over a circle of flowers she's been fussing over. Yes, she does pause -- likely to critique her placement and technique -- but all the more reason she startles upon the other's ... excited entrance.]

-- Um.

[boi who are u]

Yes, I'm okay.

[... and seeing as she's far too polite to send him away, looks back to the flowers to see if there's something he can help with] I'll likely need more flowers soon.

[rhapsodist]

Ah, yes, cinnamon and apple is always a good combination. Can't really go wrong with it, now can you?

[Genesis never minded the chatter. The old folk that came in a lot tended to chat him up anyway.]

All kinds, really. My usuals are fantasy, though. I generally stay away from horror and other dark tales. Yourself?

[He reads to escape reality, after all. He didn't need to have a book depress him. He rested his chin on his hand, pulling a chair with his foot from behind to sit at the counter.]

[rhapsodist]

It's a skill when you're used to hurting yourself.

[He looked at the title and nodded.]

Ah, I see. Yes, they continued even after he died. They planned out quite a bit, so Jody Lynn Nye was able to continue them as far as I could tell. Never read them myself, although I'd been meaning to. [A laugh.] But that's no surprise.

[There was never enough time to read everything, as much as he would like to.]

At least this is less dramatic than canon. Which Yuu remembers now.

[dejerate]

Mika! When did you -- the fuck didn't you tell me you were here?!

[Okay so Yuu might have been. Way more distracted than usual the last few months since he got the app, a few months after he himself had moved to Recolle. But still. Regardless, whatever annoyance there is at only now finding out Mika is here is quite quick to dissipate in his joy and relief at seeing the other.

While also trying to ignore the realization on his memories. That was Mika. He had....but no. Mika didn't even necessarily have the Retrospec app to know what Yuu would be talking about, right? So instead, Yuu tries to force a smile, his own hand raising to Mika's shoulder -- yeah, Mika was still slightly taller. Just like he remembered. That much hadn't changed. While he had been annoyed with the rain before, he doesn't seem to notice or mind it now. Even if the rain drips from his bangs.]

I was just checking this place out myself. I live back in Recolle, though, I mean.

[sundays]

Ah, then I'll get more for— [oh, but it looks like her hair is getting in her way a little bit....? he cuts himself off as he laughs] Actually....

[He'll hold out his wrist where there's two hair ties worn like bracelets (they're both pink) and then reach for his pocket where he pulls out two hairclips. They're Hello Kitty themed.

He's always had these on his person, ever since he was a kid, given the fact that his siblings tend to grow out his hair a lot longer than he does. So he has no issues offering them out to this girl (ah, she's pretty) who might need them.]

Here!

[sundays]

Do you think? I was using my GPS.... well, to the best of my ability anyway.

[BUT SURE. he'll make a turn. his memory isn't always the best but determined as he is, he'll try anything to try to get back to recolle.]

For some reason I haven't been able to get any connection to Recollé at all for the past few months.

[adoringpast]

[ really now... ]

It's been like that for a while now, actually. We couldn't get in touch with the others outside the city either since last year, nor we couldn't get mail in and out either. It's like we're trapped in our own world this entire time.

[ and it doesn't seem that it'll get fixed soon either. thanks, retrospec ]

So if you think that your family forgot to update you on things in the city, that's not the case at all. In fact we were pretty anxious these past few months because of the utter lack of communication. And we still don't know if any of this can be fixed.